Three-dimensional (3D) printing is an additive manufacturing process in which successive layers of material are laid down to form three-dimensional objects from a digital model. In additive manufacturing, successive material layers are joined together by fusing, binding, or solidification through processes including sintering, extrusion, and irradiation. For example, a powder bed of a 3D object printing system needs to be pre-heated to a target temperature and maintained throughout the 3D object printing process. Currently, a dedicated heating source, e.g., a plurality of short wave infrared (IR) emitters is deployed in a 3D object printing system to perform this pre-heating process.
Throughout the drawings, identical reference numbers designate similar, but not necessarily identical, elements.